Knitted collar for a knitted article of wear



March 25, 1969 J. BELLOT 3,434,309

KNITTED COLLAR FOR A KNITTED ARTICLE OF WEAR Filed Oct. 12. 1965 IN VEN TOR JACG UES BELL T United States Patent 3,434,309 KNITTED COLLAR FOREAAIENI ITED ARTICLE OF W Jacques Bellot, Troyes, France, assignor to Societe de Tricolage Aube et Marne, French Societe Anonyme, Troyes, Auhe, France Filed Oct. 12, 1965, Ser. No. 495,181 Claims priority, applicgatiogsgrance, Oct. 13, 1964,

91 Int. Cl. A41b 3700, 5/00, 7/00 U.S. Cl. 66172 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Summary of the invention This invention relates to the manufacture of soft fold over collars for knitted articles of wear such as knitted sports shirts, or collared pullovers.

Articles of this kind have either unsightly square-ended collars or pointed collars. In the latter case, the pointed collar ends are prepared by cutting a knitted fabric-a disadvantageous procedureor by knitting a piece with the required narrowings provided either manually or on a double-needle-bed straight-bar machine or on an automatic straight-bar machine.

It is an object of the invention to manufacture a knitted collar having pointed ends on a single-needle-bed cotton machine-i.e., on the same machine as is used to manufacture the body of the particular article concerned.

Accordingly, in the method according to the invention, a continuous strip is knitted on a single-needle-bed straight-bar cotton machine, the continuous strip being formed consecutively by: a first series of courses of an appropriate length; a second series of courses of increasing length, the increase being either in the form of apparent increases or of selvedge increases; a third series of decreasing length, the narrowing being either in the form of apparent narrowings or of selvedge narrowings, the selvedges of the third series having inclinations which are equal and oppositely directed to the inclinations of the selvedges of the second series of courses; and a fourth series of courses whose stitches are of the same overall length as that of the first series; whereafter the strip thus formed is bent along its longest course, the selvedges are assembled by any appropriate conventional means, such as linking or sewing, whereafter all that remains to be done is to fold over or roll the pocket thus formed before fitting the same to the body of the article. A collar having pointed ends can therefore be produced quite simply and on the straight machine as is used to produce the body of the article.

The method of the present invention may also include at least one of the following steps:

(a) The knitting of a course of loose stitches at the place where the strip has its maximum length, to facilitate bending of the strip along a straight line to form a relatively sharp edge;

(b) The knitting of a course of loose stitches at the start and end of the strip to form locating lines; and

(c) The formation of one of the two strip parts formed by the first and fourth courses being wider than the other part, in order that the collar may have a natural fold over or roll when the loose-stitch course at the start, the loosestitch course at the end, and the increasing and decreasing, are all placed one against the other.

The invention also provides collars prepared by means of the method hereinbefore described, and knitwear, such as knitted sports shirts, pullovers with collars or similarly collared articles of wear.

The invention will be more readily understood from the following description and from a study of the accompanying exemplary drawings of an embodiment of a knitted sports shirt collar according to the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view which shows the knitted strip from which the collar is produced;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are diagrammatic views which show two consecutive phases during manufacture of the collar;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic view which shows the collar fitted to a polo shirt; and

FIG. 5 is a sectional view corresponding to line VV of FIG. 4.

To manufacture a collar 1 (FIG. 4) of a knitted sports shirt 2 on the same single-needle-bed cotton type full fashion knitting machine as is used to manufacture the shirt, a continuous knitted strip 3 (BIG. 1) according to the invention is first prepared. The strip 3 is for-med consecutively by: a first series of courses 4 from AB to CD, of an appropriate length; a second series of increasing courses 5 from CD to EF; a third series of decreasing courses 6 from HP to GH whose selvedges EG, FH have inclinations a equal to and oppositely directed to the inclinations of the selvedges CE, DF of the increasing portion 5; and a fourth series of courses 7 from GH to II of the same overall length as the first series of courses 4. The longest course EF is loosely knitted to facilitate the strip subsequently being bent along a straight line into two parts, as will be seen hereinafter. Also, the first course AB and the last course II are knitted loosely to serve as locating lines. The strip is also provided with ravelling courses 8, 9.

Preferably, the width of one of the two parts 4, 7 of the strip of equal length is greater than the width of the other. For instance, in the particular example shown the selvedge GI is slightly longer than the selvedge AC, to ensure that the collar folds over or rolls naturally when fitted to the shirt, as will be described hereinafter.

To manufacture the collar from the strip 3, the same is first bent along the longest course EF (FIG. 2), whereafter the selvedge ECA is secured to the selvedge EGI, and the selvedge FDB is secured to the selvedge FHJ, by any conventional means such as linking or sewing to form a doubled strip pooket as shown in FIG. 3, care being taken to ensure that, despite the difference between the width of the strip parts 4 and 7, the locating lines AB and I] are placed one upon another, the inclined selvedges coming one above another. All that then remains to be done is to fold over or roll the pocket thus formed before fitting it to the body of the shirt 2 (FIG. 4). As 'will be apparent, more particularly from a study of FIG. 5, since the strip part 7 is wider than the strip part 4 the collar can have a natural roll near the shirt neck hole, so that the complete article has a satisfactory appearance.

Because of the proportioned character of the strip 3 used for the collar, the collar points include an acute angle a, as will be apparent more particularly from FIGS. 1, 3 and 4. The invention therefore provides a simple and satisfactory way of making an elegantly shaped collar on the same sin-gle-needle-bed cotton machine as has previously been used to manufacture the body of the article to which the collar will subsequently be fitted.

The invention is not of course limited to the embodiment described and shown and can be modified without 3 any departure from its scope. For instance, the same procedure can be used to manufacture knitted sharppointed collars for collared pullovers and any other similarly collared articles of wear.

I claim:

1. A knitted collar having pointed ends adapted to be secured to the neck opening in an article of knit wear such as a knitted sportshirt and collared pullover-type shirt wherein the shirt and the collar are adapted to be knitted in a single-needle bed, straight-bar, cotton machine, the collar comprising a continuous strip of knitted material having a first end edge spaced from a second end edge and being formed of a plurality of knitted courses extending bet-ween and in generally parallel relationship with the end edges, said plurality of knitted courses comprising a first series of knitted courses commencing at said first end edge and extending therefrom, each of said first series of courses being of the same length, a second series of knitted courses commencing with the end course of said first series of knitted courses spaced from the first end edge, said second series of courses being of progressively increased length from the length of said first series of courses to a maximum length at its last course remote from said first series of courses, a third series of knitted courses having a first course commencing with and having the same length as the last course of said second series of courses, the courses in said third series of courses being of progressively decreased length to a last course having a length substantially'equal to the length of said first series of courses, the selvedges of said second series of knitted courses being inclined to the direction of the courses thereof and the selvedges of said third course being inclined to the direction of the courses thereof, the inclined selvedges of said third course being equal to and opposite the inclined selvedges of the second series of knitted courses, a fourth series of knitted courses having a first course commencing with the last course of said third series of courses and having its last course forming the second end edge of said continuous strip, the courses of said fourth series of courses being of the same length and the width of the fourth series of courses measured perpendicularly to the length of the courses being greater than the corresponding width of the first series of courses, said first and second series of courses being folded over upon said third and fourth series of courses with a soft fold line being formed between the last course of said second series of courses and the first course of said third series of courses and with the said selvedges of said first and second series of courses being aligned opposite said selvedges of said third and fourth series of courses and said selvedges being joined together, whereby the intersection of the fold line and the selvedges of said second and third series of courses forming points for the collar, and said continuous strip forming the collar being adapted to be attached to the neck opening in an article of knit Wear along the first and second end edges and a second fold line being adapted to be formed at the neck opening in the knitted article in the range of said first and fourth series of courses whereby the collar folds downwardly and the third and fourth courses being adapted to be arranged outwardly from the article of knit wear whereby the greater width of the fourth series of courses affords a natural roll for the collar at the neck opening.

2. A knitted collar as set forth in claim 1, wherein a course of loose stitches is knitted at the junction of the second and third series of courses to form the fold line for the collar and to provide a relatively sharp edge therefor.

33. A knitted collar as set forth in claim 1, wherein a course of loose stitches is provided at the beginning of said first series of courses and at the end of said fourth series of courses for forming locating lines for said collar.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,882,202 10/1932 Veitel 66-89 RONALD FELDBAUM, Primary Examiner.

U.S. C1. X.R. 

